BG.16.24. Gaudiya Vaisnava Sampradaya - Conscious Choice

Purpose of choosing a spiritual path

0:00I'm especially happy to see so many children. It means that we have some future. Um it's a great honor for me to speak in front of you. And uh Praya Grachiprabhu uh picked

0:24up a topic for me, he wanted me to speak about the foundation of how samradai and why there are so many different paths.

0:34We know that in Hindu religion there is such a bewildering wealth of different forms of spirituality. And I will try to speak on this topic why there are different paths. And why do we choose this particular path?

0:58What are the objective criteria for us choosing this path of Gaudya Sampradaya. Often times we do this choice without being so much conscious about the choice. Just like prasāda, basically, that's the main reason.

1:22Or we like the society, Sangha of devotees, and we are impressed by some achievements, this and that.

1:31But it's nice to have this criteria or to have this uh considerations for choosing a particular path, but it's definitely not enough to be absorbed in the practice with the proper determination.

1:52We need to have the complete conviction that this is the right path and ultimately, this right path will bring me to the highest possible goal of my existence.

2:04And even though we definitely know some arguments or some uh reasons uh why we're doing this. Uh sometimes it's not complete.

2:19Anyway, I will speak a little bit on this topic and uh if you have some questions please I will be happy to answer.

2:26So I will read first the last verse of the sixteenth chapter of Bhagavad-gītā which is called Divine and Demonic Nature, which is very important uh for our understanding. Please repeat uh this sloka.

2:46Tasmachastram pramanamte, tasma chastram pra manamte, tasmachastram pramanamte, tasma chastram pramanamte, karyakaryavyavastito, Yatva

3:14shastra, gjatva shastravidhā noktam, shastra vidhanokam, karma kartu miharhasi, Karma karto miharhasi, harma turto mi, tasmachastrampramanamte, machramamte,

3:39karyaakary Vyavastido, Gjatvas Shastravidan Oktam, Karamakarto Maharhasi Karmakartu Miha Tasmat Therefor Shastram Shastram the Scriptures Pramana Evidence Teor Karya Duty Akarya and forbidden

4:23activities Vyavasti indetermining In the judgment knowing Shastra of Scripture Vidhana Vidhana the regulations Uktam as declared as declared Karma Work Kartum to do Iha in this world, Ar Hasi, you should.

5:07One should therefore understand what is the duty and what is not duty by the regulations of the Scriptures. Knowing such rules and regulations one should act so that

5:22he may gradually be elevated very interesting how Śrīla Prabhupāda translates this because actually there is no word elevation here in the in the verse, but Prabhupāda gives the inner meaning of this verse.

5:40Why do we have to follow Shastra? Anyway, his purport. As stated in the 15th chapter, all the rules and regulations of the Vedas are meant for knowing Krishna.

5:54If one understands Kṛṣṇa from the Bhagavad-gītā and becomes situated in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, engaging himself in devotional service, he has reached the highest perfection of knowledge offered by the Vedic literature.

6:12Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu made this process very easy. He asked people simply to chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma Rāma Rāma Hare Hare and to engage in the devotional service of the Lord and eat the remnants of foodstuff offered to the deity.

6:41One who is directly engaged in all these devotional activities is to be understood as having studied all Vedic literature.

6:52He has come to the conclusion perfectly of course for the ordinary person who are not in Krishna consciousness or who are not engaged in the devotional service, what is to be done and what is not to be done must be decided by the injunctions of the Vedas.

7:10One should act accordingly without argument. That is called following the principles of Shastra or Scripture. Shastra is without the four principal defects that are visible in the conditioned soul.

7:28In perfect senses, the propensity for cheating, certainty of committing mistakes and certainty of being illusioned. These four principal defects and conditions life disqualify one from putting forth rules and regulations.

7:50Therefore, the rules and regulations as described in the Shastra being above these defects are accepted without alteration by all great saints, ācāryas, and great souls.

8:05In India, there are many parties of spiritual understanding generally classified as two, the impersonalist and the personalist. Most of them, however, lead their lives according to the principles of the Vedas.

8:22Without following the principles of the scriptures, one cannot elevate himself to the perfectional stage. One who actually therefore understands the purport of the shastras is considered fortunate.

8:40In human society, aversion to the principles of understanding of the Supreme Personality of God is the cause of all fall-downs. That is the greatest offense of human life.

8:54Therefore, māyā, the material energy of the Supreme Personality of God, is always giving us trouble in the shape of threefold miseries. This material energy is constituted of the three modes of material nature.

9:11One has to raise himself at least to the mode of goodness before the path of understanding the Supreme Lord can be opened.

9:22Without raising oneself to the standard of the mode of goodness, one remains in ignorance and passion, which is the cause of demoniac life.

9:35Those in the modes of passion and ignorance deride the scriptures, deride the holy man and deride the proper understanding of the supreme personality of Godhead.

9:48They disobey the instructions of the spiritual master and they do not care for the regulations of the scriptures. In spite of hearing the glories of devotional service, they are not attracted.

10:03Thus they manufacture their own way of elevation; these are some of the defects of human society which led to the demoniac status of life.

10:18If however one is able to be guided by a proper and bona fide spiritual master, one can be led to the path of elevation, to the higher stage then one's life becomes successful.

10:37Thus end the Bhaktivedanta purports to the sixteenth chapter of Śrīmad Bhagavad-gītā in the matter of divine and demoniac natures. Śrīla Prabhupāda.

10:49Tasmāt śāstram pramāṇam te kāryākāryavyavasthitau jñātvā śāstravidhānoktam karma kartum ihārhasi.

10:59One should therefore understand that what is the duty and what is not the duty by the regulations of the scriptures, knowing such rules and regulations what should act so that he may gradually be elevated.

11:15Oṁ ajñāna-timirāndhasya jñānāñjana-śalākayā cakṣur unmīlitaṁ yena tasmai śrī-gurave namaḥ. Śrī-caitanya-mano-’bhīṣṭaṁ svayaṁ rūpaḥ kadā mahyaṁ dadāti sva-padāntikam.

11:40Vande 'haṁ śrī-guroḥ śrī-yuta-pada-kamalaṁ śrī-gurūn vaiṣṇavāṁś ca, śrī-guroḥ śrī-yuta-pada-kamalaṁ śrī-gurūn vaiṣṇavāṁś ca śrī-rūpaṁ sāgrajātaṁ

11:59saha-gaṇa-raghunāthānvitaṁ taṁ sa-jīvam. sādvaitaṁ sāvadhūtaṁ parijana-sahitaṁ Sahitam, Krishna Chaitanyade, Sri Radha Krishna, Saganalita,

12:23sri vishaka vitams, Krhnakarunasindu, Dinavandu Jagatpate, Gopesha Gopikakanta Radakantamostute, taptakanchana, Rade Vraneshwari, Vishabanu Sutevi pranamamihari, Vanchakalpatarubyascha, Kripasindubycha, Patidanavaneby Vaisnavy Namonama, Sri Krishna Chaitanya Prabunitananda, Shri Advaitara, Srivasadigura Bhta Vrinda.

13:27Hare Krishna Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna Hare Hare Hare Rama Hare Rama

Rational structure of the Vedic system

13:39Rama Rama Hare Hare Hajanulambi toyokanakavad, Sankirtanay ka bitarokamala taksa, Vishwambarod vitavaruga dharma Paluvandei, Jagat priakarow Karunavatar Yon tahishy mahvacham prasuptam, Sandji vaya ta ki la Shakti Darah Swadamna, Anjamarna Sravanat Vagadim, Prananda Bhagavati pouruchaatubiam Tavajas me, tavai vas me, na jivamit vai vinna, hiti viga devita, nanam charanantikam.

14:26When I first read Bhagavad-gītā, which was in nineteen eighty, the immediate impression which I had, and at that time I was a postgraduate student doing my PhD degree in molecular biology.

14:50The immediate impression which really struck me very much was that here we have something which is completely different from everything which I thought before.

15:03The conception which speaks about God, about his supreme position. And I was born and raised in an atheistic family in an atheistic society where nobody believed in God, where faith in God was strictly forbidden.

15:23But when I first read Bhagavad-gītā, the impression and it was not Prabhupāda's Bhagavad-gītā, it was just the verses of Bhagavad-gītā translated long back into Russian.

15:36But still, the impression which I had is that here is something which is speaking about God but in a very rational manner. In a completely logical manner.

15:52The initial premise is not logical because ultimately premises cannot be logically established. Whether God is there or not it's it cannot be proved by logic.

16:09There can be some considerations, but ultimately it's not something which can be proved. But by taking this initial premise that God is there, It develops a completely logical and rational system.

16:26And that was the main attraction for me from the very beginning, and it still remains an attraction for me, because in the modern world we are trained to be rational. We are not village people.

16:40Village people, they're not very rational, you know, and they're prone to believe something, you of course we all have some village nature as well in our hearts still.

16:54But at the same time our basic understanding of life and our basic demand

17:00even to the spirituality is that it has to have at least some rational side. And definitely Vedic scriptures and Vedic system provides a very rational outlook which is the greatest force.

17:18If we take any other scripture we will not find even a fraction of the greatness of rationality which is there in Vedic scriptures. And of course when Prabhupāda explains Vedic scriptures, he makes it even more rational.

17:39Sometimes totally irrational things he explains in a very rational manner, making it very relevant to our experience. And starting with this initial point, I wanted to speak a little

Transforming material nature through scriptural discipline

17:57bit about general understanding or general design of the Shastra. Which is hinted in this verse and purport, The topic which is described in the 16th chapter is of course divine and demonic nature.

18:19And basically, when Krishna describes demonic nature, which is, you know, when we read this description of demonic nature, we can very easily recognize ourselves. It's a very graphic description.

18:34You know, I remember I gave Bhagavad-gītā to one of my friends and he said, great book, especially I like this 16th chapter, it's about me and it's a fact because basically what Krishna explains he explains

18:54the nature which is being developed due to the influence of the modes of rajas and tamas, passion and ignorance. And because these modes are predominant in the modern world, So we are all more or less demons.

19:14We are small demons. Not big Hiraṇyakaśipus, we're small Hiraṇyakaśipus. But you know, we all like Hiraṇyakaśipu. We like golden pillows.

19:31So and basically, this influence which is there in the mind, which is coming from outside and which we brought from our past life experience. We are borne into this uh situation, you know, creates a certain mentality and this mentality creates a certain lifestyle, creates certain conceptions, certain philosophies, and ultimately creates the chaos which we're living in.

20:02This very chaotic and very you know not peaceful society.

20:10And Krishna explains this in this 16th chapter by saying that ultimately, if we are... If we are, if we follow this nature which is there, if we more or less follow the nature which is already there in our mind, it will lead us to hell.

20:39And uh uh we can see the whole world is going to hell, and we are very happily going to hell together with the world. So it would not be a great description if Krishna would not give the way out of it.

20:57The greatness of this chapter is that he gives this graphic description. He explains what are the consequences of our demonic nature or demoniac mentality.

21:09How, you know, the interaction with other people is being conducted, and what is the what is the main emphasis in life? He explains all this, but then he explains that it brings about sufferings.

21:25And at the very end, here he explains the way out of it. And he says there is a way out of it just to follow Shastra. And Srila Prabhupada explains this in the Purport.

21:39He says that ultimately the, undisciplined nature which is being developed due to the influence of the modes of Rajas and Tamas, Passion and Ignorance, this undisciplined nature can be reformed.

22:00And the only way to reform this nature is to follow shastra.

22:05In the previous verse, in the previous verse, Krishna says, yāḥ śāstram vidhi-utsṛjya vartate kāma-kārataḥ. If you reject mutsirija, rejecting this śāstra vidhi, the rules of the śāstras, vartate kāma-kārataḥ, and living by your whim, by your capricious nature, by

22:35your totally completely unregulated nature, kāma-kārataḥ, following your come, your desires, desires of your heart which you brought from the past life and which is imposed upon you by the environment.

22:51Na siddhiṁ avāpnoti, you will not achieve any success. You will not achieve any perfection. Na siddhiṁ avāpnoti. Na sukham. You will not become happy. Na paraṁ gatiḥ. You will not get the higher destination.

23:09Your next life will be bad. Your present life will not be good. You will not be happy. You will not achieve the freedom from sufferings, which is Siddhi. Siddhi is ultimately the state when we don't suffer.

23:27And our next destination will be bad. So therefore in this verse he says tasmāc chāstraṁ pramāṇaṁ te. He makes this very important statement. He says, therefore, tasmāt, śāstraṁ pramāṇaṁ te, kāryākārya- vyavasthitau.

23:50You know, if you want to establish what is carrier, what is a kārya, what you should do, what you shouldn't do. If you want to decide, there is only one way to know.

24:05There is only one way to actually lead the life which will be ultimately successful. And this uh how do we know about this way of life? How do we lead this life?

24:18Tasmāc chāstraṁ pramāṇaṁ te. Pramāṇa for this is śāstra. Only Shastra can really tell us what we are supposed to do and what we are not supposed to do.

24:30You know and uh uh in nyaya there is a very beautiful definition of what is Shastra. ājñāta-jñāpakaṁ śāstram. Shastra is something by which you know which you cannot know by any other means.

24:46In other words, Shastra reveals to you, which Shastra means revealed knowledge, and Shastra reveals to you which you will never be able to understand either by your experience, experiential knowledge, pratyaksha, or by your logic.

25:09You know, if you want to know something higher than this, we have been living by our experience and by our logic. And we know what is the result. The result is depression, suffering, stress.

25:24Who can confirm this? Please raise your hands. It's a fact.

Definition and importance of pramana

25:31It's a hundred percent fact that ultimately this life which is based on a lower pramanas and Krishna makes this very beautiful statement or uses this very important word which I will try to explain now a little bit.

25:52Pramana. What is pramana? Who can give the definition? What is pramana? Evidence of evidence of proof. Evidence of proof, yes. But actually it's not. It's only colloquial meaning of this word.

26:12And this word does mean evidence eller proof. But pramana literally minins that ma från sanskrit means to measure, to know. Pramana. Prama means the right knowledge. Pramana means the instrument of right knowledge.

26:39The literal the actual meaning of this word pramana is that the means by which you can be sure that your knowledge is right. Because we all know something, right?

26:55The only problem we don't know whether what we know is right or wrong. And this is the most important question, you know, knowing everyone, some knowledge everyone has. Including animals. Dog, does dog have some knowledge?

27:16Definitely. He knows where to eat, he knows how to sniff, he knows how to find food, he knows, you know, animals have knowledge. Animals, what is the difference between human beings and animals?

27:36It is said in the shastra: Janena Hina Pasubik Samana. If somebody is deprived of knowledge, he is equal to the animals. So, but what does it mean? Animals have knowledge, humans have knowledge.

27:55What does it mean that without knowledge you become equal to the animals, you go to the level of the animals? What is the meaning of this statement? What is the difference between our knowledge and animals' knowledge.

28:10Intelligence Yeah, exactly. We know that we know, at least we may know that we know, and animals don't know that they know. They know but they don't know they are not aware of their knowledge.

28:30The privilege of the human being is the awareness. Awareness means you can definitely you can estimate your knowledge. Like for example, a small child.

28:44He has knowledge, his knowledge is that I'm suffering, right? And he's crying because of this.

28:52But you know, because he doesn't know, you know, he doesn't have this awareness, he doesn't know what to do. He just has this feeling or experience of suffering, but he cannot really understand what he is supposed to do. He just knows that you know and he's crying.

29:16So the same way animals animals have some knowledge but they they are not aware of their knowledge and they cannot really judge their knowledge.

29:27The human life starts from the from this point when we judge whether my knowledge is right or wrong.

29:37When we ask this question how to get the proper knowledge as lets when we ask ourselves how to get the correct knowledge, whether my knowledge is correct or not.

29:55You know, unless and until we ask this question to ourselves, we are equal to animals. We just live the karmic life. Everyone has some knowledge and everyone reacts according to this knowledge.

30:08You know you ask anyone and everyone has some understanding, some idea what he is supposed to do, what he is not supposed to do. But the human life doesn't start unless one questions: is my knowledge right or wrong?

30:27And here Krishna says a very important statement. He makes this very important, extremely important statement. You can only be sure what is right, what is wrong in a matter of what you're doing. From the shastra.

30:46Tasmāt śāstraṁ pramānaṁ te kāryākārya-vyavasthitau. What you're supposed to do, what you're not supposed to do, you yourself will never figure it out.

30:59And because you will get the wrong knowledge, you will suffer as a result of these actions which are based on the wrong assumptions on a wrong premises on a wrong foundation the foundation of the wrong knowledge.

31:16So therefore here Krishna you know he stresses this. And this is actually the greatness of our religion, of our spirituality, of Hinduism.

31:31Although Śrīla Prabhupāda was very much against this Hinduism. He says there is no such thing as Hinduism. And that's a fact.

31:39You know, Hinduism is a Muslim word. Not even Muslim world, you know, these Muslims they call everyone who lives behind the river Sindh as Hindus, you know, because they couldn't say Sindus, so they say Hindus.

31:56You know and to call the variety of spiritual paths which is there in India as Hinduism is just a joke. Because they hardly have anything in common.

32:12You know it's the same as to say that all Americans follow the religion which is called Americanism and they all worship hamburger and Pepsi-Cola.

32:33But still, you know, because Hinduism is there, that's accepted term, we also use this term.

Universal principles of Sanatana Dharma

32:40But the real term which Prabhupāda explains to the Hinduism or to the scriptures, to the religion of the scriptures, or to the way of life of the scriptures is Sanatana Dharma.

32:51And Sanatana Dharma means we follow the natural laws. Why it is so important for us to call ourselves not some not Hindus, not this or that, because it's just some relative sectarian conception.

33:13What we want to say, and we want to be sure, we actually have to be sure that we follow some natural laws. Hinduism is nothing but a very great system, a general system.

33:27When the rishis discovered the sages of the past discovered the great laws of nature and they created śāstras and scriptures accordingly. According to the natural laws.

33:44You know if we take uh and if we take any other religion we will see that even a fraction of the understanding, the right understanding which is there in the foundation of the śāstras is not anywhere else.

34:00Really I I I'm not sectarian, I'm just a fanatical Hindu. No no from the completely objective point of view, if we are, if we can be, if a human being can be objective, we can understand that this is a natural law.

34:19What is the natural law? Karma is a natural law. You know, I I remember one once I was I was on the radio and we had a live uh live uh show uh with one orthodox priest.

34:38I was there and the orthodox priest was there, and people were calling and were answering questions. He was answering questions according to his tradition. I was answering questions according to our tradition.

34:50And the end of this talk, he told me: uh your law of karma is a very pessimistic thing, and I said, I'm really sorry it's not my law of karma, it's your law of karma as well.

35:10It's a universal law, it doesn't you know if you're orthodox Christian it doesn't mean that you're free from karma all of a sudden or you are not affected or not subjected to the law of karma.

35:25It's just a cause and effect relationship. It's a very natural thing. There is nothing irrational. And taking from this law of karma, which is completely, totally rational, which is totally scientific, 100% scientific.

35:43You know, then the rishis they developed a beautiful concept of dharma. What is karma? Karma is a twin concept which is very much related to karma because karma by karma we get ourselves out of balance. What is karma?

36:04Karma is a totally imbalanced way of life.

36:09And when people just follow karma, follow their desires, which is developed by karma, you know they bring about chaos in their own life and the environment, everything which is you know throwing out the whole nature out of balance.

36:26So the rishis of the past they developed the concept of dharma, which is balancing concept. What is dharma? Dharma is something which brings balance, brings stability.

36:39Why Vedic culture, Vedic civilization was so stable for thousands and thousands of years. Continuous without any change. People were very content and satisfied because of this concept of dharma.

36:55You follow your dharma, you follow your duty, and it's different.

36:59If you take any other religion, they will try to impose upon you the uh some standard set of rules. But according to Vedic understanding, it's not standardized.

37:17According to different adhikaris, people will follow different path.

37:23And because of this, then of course, if you have karma and dharma, you have punarjanma, you have reincarnation, the concept of reincarnation, which again is extremely logical.

37:36You take this initial premise that there is karma that everything is logical, everything is not whimsical. Even Albert Einstein, the greatest scientist of the previous century,

37:50he said that God doesn't play dice. It basically means that there is nothing whimsical in this world. Everything is logical according to the law. And if there is law, then the concept of dharma is there.

38:10If concept of dharma and concept of karma is there, you know, for what you are doing this for better future life. Then you have, you know, the concept of soul and everything is very logically developed from these concepts.

38:25Very rationally developed from this from this understanding.

Scriptural discipline for spiritual elevation

38:31And uh, it was something I just wanted to say what was it about the scriptures. Anyway, uh what Prabhupada explains here is that this stress upon Shastra is the most important.

38:58Srila Prabhupada in so many places in Bhagavad-gītā criticizes Mayavadis. And this is the only place where he more or less praises them. The purport which we read.

39:14He says, both personalists and impersonalisats, they're good, at least they're good because they follow the same shastra. It's amazing how important it is, and I wanted to stress it again and again.

39:30I I I will go into more details a little bit later, but in the beginning I'm developing this point that shastra is the most important. It's so important that in Vedic understanding, who is atheist and who is theist?

39:50According to the Western understanding, who is atheist? Atheist is somebody who doesn't accept God. Who is theist? Theist is somebody who recognizes or accepts or says that God is there.

40:05It's not according to Vedic understanding. You may be recognized as a theist without believing in God. And you may be labeled as an atheist, Gnostic, according to the Vedic tradition, believing in God.

40:27Because it's not important if you believe in God or not believe in God. What is more important if you believe in Shastra or not believe in Shastra?

40:40According to the Vedic culture, you are Astika or theist if you believe in Shastra. And if you reject Shastra, even if you accept God, you are atheist. You have no standing in Vedic culture. Why? Why?

41:02It's very important to answer why. It's extremely important for us to know why. Because even if you don't believe in God, but you follow Shastra, you will be elevated and you will believe in God.

41:17Your initial point may be this: you don't believe in God, but still you accept the discipline of Shastra and you live the disciplined way and you accept Shastra, and Shastra is the only way, accepting the rules of Shastra is the only way to understand something about God. So ultimately, because you're accepting Shastra, you're accepting holy men, you're accepting so many other things, you're accepting the rules, ultimately you will be elevated.

41:48If you reject Shastra, even if you believe in God, you will degrade yourself.

41:55The amazing thing about Hindu tradition or our culture or Vedic culture is that it's the system of gradual elevation, no matter which position you are now.

42:07We may be completely tamasic. But if we accept Shastra, we will be very quickly elevated. And ultimately we will understand that there is God, and ultimately we will understand that

42:21the highest development of human consciousness is to chant Hare Krishna Hare Krishna, Krishna, Krishna, Hare Hare, Hare Rāma Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare. And when we understand this, we can forget all about justice.

42:34I can congratulate you with this. But not before we really understand this. Śrīla Prabhupāda, he often said a very peculiar statement. He said ultimately you don't need to read my books.

42:51He also many times said you need to read my books, but to make a very interesting point, he said a few times, several times he said ultimately, the only reason why I wrote my books is to induce you to chant Hare Krishna.

43:12So the scriptures are there. Why the scriptures are there? Why the Shastras are there? He repeats the same thing in this purpose. He says that if you uh understood completely totally

43:28hundred percent that this is the way to live to chant Hare Krishna and ultimately love God you you don't need Shastra because you know the essence of all shastras.

43:40But you need all the shastras unless you develop this complete faith. The shastras are there to ultimately help us to get

43:52This is the firm faith that this is the way of life? This is the best way of life. This is the best way in this life. This is the best way for the future, this is the best way for everything.

44:05We have to be completely convinced. And unless we get this conviction, we have to depend ourselves very firmly on the shastras.

44:15There was a very interesting story with Śrīla Prabhupāda. Once Prabhupāda was the leaders around him, all the leaders of the big shots, sannyasis, GBCs, you know, temple presidents, whatever, just a you know very close circle of his leading disciples.

44:40And all of a sudden Prabhupada looked at them and asked them, are you convinced that Krishna is God? Are you convinced? And you know, he was looking so intensely that everyone,

45:00you know, one second before they were convinced. But being confronted with this question, everyone became little doubtful. Nobody dared to say I am convinced. Nobody, no one dared to say I am convinced.

45:17Nobody dared to say I'm not convinced. Everyone kept silence. You know, everyone was just silent.

45:26And you know, and Prabhupāda said, unless you convinced, you know, Prabhupāda made the statement: if you were convinced, we would take over this world within 18 days. All the shastras are there to develop our faith.

45:43Therefore, they are so rational. Therefore, they are so beautiful. Ultimately, they help us to develop faith. When we develop faith, we can chant Hare Krishna with complete absorption.

45:55Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna, Krishna Hare Hare Hare Rāma Hare Rāma Rāma Rāma Hare Hare.

46:02Until this point we may chant Hare Krishna and we think, you know, yeah this is yeah right. I'm yeah, is it the you know is it the best thing which I should do now? And usually we have so many better things to do.

46:19And we are distracted in so many different ways. So I'm still on this point that you know how important Shastra is.

46:32That Shastra brings you from whatever point you are, and elevates your consciousness, giving you discipline. This is actually the meaning of shastra. Shastra means discipline.

46:45The Dhatu, Sanskrit Dhatu Shast means to rule or to discipline. And this gradual discipline, this discipline will elevate your consciousness, elevate your mind, at least to the status of the mode of goodness.

47:04Even though you may not be on the status of the mode of goodness and the influence of the mode of goodness, you will be brought to this level of goodness. And from mode of goodness, you will understand God.

47:17You will definitely understand that God is there. So this is how Shastra works. Shastra, first, you know, when somebody follows Shastra, usually how we start following Shastra. Why do we start following Shastra?

47:33We start following Shastra because we want to fulfill some of our desires. Right? We want to be happy, we want to do this and that, you know.

47:43And Prabhupāda very cleverly said, yeah, you know, whatever you need, just chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, you will get it. Shastra says this and uh you know and we feel it.

47:59Uh you know so many people come to the spiritual life because they suffer and they feel that there is some fulfillment, that the sufferings are less. People first get the fulfillment of their desires.

48:15Initially, Krishna is very generous, he fulfills all our desires. Little later he starts frustrating us even more than before. But anyway, by following Shastra, we fulfill our desires.

48:30By fulfilling our desires, we develop faith in Shastra. By developing faith in Shastra, we develop faith in karma and dharma. By developing faith in karma and dharma, we develop faith in reincarnation.

48:44By developing faith in reincarnation, we develop faith in ātmā, in the soul, in the existence, eternal existence of the soul, by developing faith in the eternal existence of the soul, we develop faith in God.

48:56By developing faith in God, we ultimately understand this is my, you know, this is the most important thing. I am the soul. God is there. The relationship between myself and God is the most important.

49:09What is this relationship? This relationship is love. Love means bhakti. Bhakti means Hare Krishna, Hari Krishna, Krishna, Krishna, Hari Hari Hari Ramare, Ram Ram Ramare Hari.

49:20And if you understand this, you understood the essence of all the Vedas. And now I want to say a few words. Are you still with me? Are you? You're not with Prasadam yet. Or are you?

49:38Please let me know when your cravings to taste Krishna consciousness in the form of prasāda will become very strong. I don't want to torture you too much.

Navigating diverse interpretations of scriptures

49:54So, what I want to say a little bit, uh, little further. First, I wanted to establish this glory of Shastras. But as I said, so many people follow Shastra. Mayavadis follow Shastra.

50:13And uh, Swami Narayan follows Shastra and Madhva Sampradaya follows Shastra, Ramanuja Sampradaya follows Shastra. You know, so many people follow Shastra. How do we how do we know which interpretation of Shastra is right?

50:32What is really the correct path?

50:36So, and this is exactly the question which by establishing initially, what I established so far, I established one point that the Shastra, according to this verse, that the Shastra is the main Pramana.

50:50If we want to know something very important about the spiritual life, about God, we have to accept shastra. Now shastra is huge. There is this famous verse from Mahābhārata, tārko Pratishta. Logic doesn't have foundation.

51:15Tarko Pratta. Sruta Yovina. Śruti is. There is a beautiful story in I believe it's in either some Upaniṣad or maybe Purāṇa.

51:31I think it's in Upaniṣads that there was a Bhāradvāja Muni and Bhāradvāja Muni was diligently studying Shastra, and he was so good at this and he was studying and studying and studying his whole life he was just studying shastra, his life came to an end, and he was still not complete with his studying of the shastra.

51:55So he started praying to Lord Indra, who is the ruler of this universe, and he can change our karma to a certain extent.

52:05And he said, My dear Lord, I want to complete my study of the Shastra. Please give me one more lifetime. And Indra said, Tathāstu. Let it be so; you please study a little more. You're a harmless creature. You know.

52:21No problem. So the next life, the whole life, long life, he was studying Shastra so diligently, still he was not complete. So at the end of the life, he said, My dear Lord, I need one more life to study Shastras.

52:38So his wish was granted. The third life, he was studying Shastras and studying Shastras and studying Shastras and becoming more and more enthusiastic, but still, he felt that you know still something is incomplete.

52:52So for the fourth time he asked Indra, My dear Lord Indra, can you give me one more lifetime? And at that point Indra started laughing.

53:03He said, My dear sir, you want to know what is Shastra, and at that point he gave him a mystical vision and he showed him a huge mountain. And he said, this is the Shastra.

53:21And you know how much you know, little you know handful of pebbles. This much you know from the shastra. So please don't ask me for another life because I will have to give you many more lives.

53:42So it's important for us because this is important question, you know we are not really so deeply you know most of us don't know Sanskrit so well. What do we what does it mean Shastra? Shastra is so huge. Shrutayovibina.

54:02And then Maharaj in this verse, says, Nasafri Shirya Samatam Nabinam, and all different sages they all develop their own theories. They may follow Shastra, that everyone is just saying.

54:20This is good and this is good and you know this is the past, this is the philosophy. So bewildering isn't it? And here's another one who is sitting something and trying to explain.

54:34So, but there is a uh Maharaj, of course, gives a very beautiful conclusion to this, which I will come a little later.

54:45But uh um uh ultimately uh having the limited lifetime, live it limited time and we're busy, you know, we're living in London. We're not like Bharadvaja Muni, who has the privilege to study all the Shastras and understand.

55:09We have to have some, you know, crash course in the shastra. So what is the crash course in the Shastra? What is the how do we know which shastra should we follow? Because again, shastra is so huge and so immense and so bewildering. And in Shastra, you can basically find any quot to justify any nonsense which you want to do, you know.

55:35If you want to justify something and if you know enough Shastra, you you can find something. So, what to do? What is the solution for this? I'll give you some indication.

55:54Um first I will bewilder you a little bit, but then I will. I'll give you some little you know the you know there are six systems of philosophy. The highest system of philosophy developed by Srila Vyasadeva is Vedanta.

56:17So we may safely reject all other philosophies. Because they are Astika, they accept Vedas, but you know, Nya doesn't really accept God, Vaisheshika doesn't really accept God, yoga has very strange conception of God.

56:39The only philosophy which is there, which is really according to the Vedas. And they are for different grades and different stages, different adikars of people.

56:49But we can safely say without being too much bias that the highest development of the philosophy, the most right understanding of the Shastras is Vedanta philosophy.

57:02But again, in Vedanta philosophy, we know as Prabhupada says there are two schools, Mayawari School and Personalist School, Personalist School.

57:11And in personalist school there is, you know, there is Madva School and there is Ramanuja School and Nimbarkacharya school and Vallabhacharya school and then Gaudiya school. How do you know which is right?

57:26And Śaṅkarācārya is there. And of course Shankaracharya, the followers of Shankaracharya say everyone is right. It's a nice philosophy. It's a very very kind of not fanatical, you know.

57:41You just do whatever you like and ultimately everything is anyway, it's uh it's all illusion. You know, it doesn't matter what you're doing, you know, it's okay, it's fine, you know.

57:53Everyone is right, yatamata, you know, whatever you think it's okay. Prabhupada was always wondering, you know, how it is, you know, whatever you uh whatever is there in your mind is the path.

58:06He says, you know, this is just doesn't work really because you know if you want to reach some destination there should be some certain path.

58:15So uh what uh uh first I will give you the traditional understanding how to develop how to determine this and then I will add something uh according to this verse of Mahābhārata, which we really clearly have to understand.

58:32So the traditional way of explaining Vedanta philosophy or developing some school of Vedanta philosophy is very interesting.

58:43Śaṅkarācārya was the first one who it's the most ancient school of Vedanta philosophy developed by Śaṅkarācārya. Before the philosophies. He didn't really. It's not new.

58:58Philosophy of Śaṅkarācārya is eternal. There were similar philosophies for centuries and thousands and thousands of years. Always they were there.

59:11What Śaṅkarācārya did, he systematized this. And he brought it into the Shastric context. It's very interesting because we have to know how it works and how our understanding works.

Triple foundation of Vedantic philosophy

59:30So he said that if you want to uh establish a school, you have to prove your school of thought or your system of thought. Your system and subsequent practices and subsequent attitudes because it's all derived from the understanding of the shastras, you have to prove your system of thought and the lifestyle and the rules and regulations which you follow and the attitudes which you try to develop and the moods which you try to cultivate within yourself, but you have to establish it on the basis of three things.

1:00:13It's called prasthāna-traya. Prasthāna-traya means the path or the road, triple road, to the absolute, to understanding the truth, to understanding the reality. Ultimately, that's what we want.

1:00:31We want to understand the reality. So he said prasthāna-traya for this.

1:00:37Prasthāna-traya means that you have to establish your philosophy firmly on the basis of Upaniṣads. Eleven Upaniṣads is there, the main ones, on the basis of Vedānta-sūtra and on the basis of Bhagavad-gītā.

1:00:53And after Śaṅkarācārya, everyone except for us follow the same scenario and it's very interesting why Gauḍīyas

1:01:06didn't follow the same scenario. Śaṅkarācārya wrote commentary on Upaniṣad. Śaṅkarācārya wrote commentaries on Vedānta-sūtra, and then he wrote commentaries on Bhagavad-gītā. After him, Rāmānujācārya came.

1:01:19He did the same thing. He did the same thing. He wrote commentaries on this prasthāna-traya. After him, in the 13th century, well the first one was Nimbārka Ācārya.

1:01:29They say that Nimbārka Ācārya was even before Śaṅkarācārya.

1:01:33It's a theistic school of Vedanta, and he was it's quite certain that he was even before Śaṅkarācārya, the most ancient commentator of Vedānta-sūtra, Nimbārka Ācārya, Madhvācārya.

1:01:48He wrote commentaries on Vedānta-sūtra, Upaniṣads, Bhagavad-gītā and then

1:01:53Vallabhācārya wrote commentary on Vedānta-sūtra, Upaniṣads, Bhagavad-gītā and then Caitanya Mahāprabhu here he wrote And of course, Goswamis of Vṛndāvana and Jīva Goswami didn't even bother to do this. Why?

1:02:17I wanted to tell you why, and it's it's very important for us to understand how it works.

1:02:26First, but first we have to see how it works in other schools. A little bit, I will give you a very brief understanding of this, but I think it's very important for us to understand.

Srimad-Bhagavatam as the scriptural essence

1:02:39When they say about these three things: Śruti, Upaniṣads, Nyāya, Vedānta-sūtra, which is logical explanation of Upaniṣads, and Smṛti, which is Bhagavad-gītā, basically, and sometimes Vishnu Sahasranama uh is counted among this, so

1:03:00in reality they don't explain the filosophy on the basis of Upaniṣads, they don't explain Upaniṣads as such. What they do, all the commentators, listen, it's very important.

1:03:19Only then will we understand why Gaudiya Sampradaya is such a is the highest development of Vedic thought.

1:03:27Is really the highest and the most subtle development of the whole progression of the Vedic understanding, of the understanding of Vedas. So in reality, how it works, all

1:03:44the commentators they explain Upaniṣads on the basis of Vedānta-sūtra. Because in Vedānta-sūtra, Śrīla Vyāsadeva gives a very logical explanation of all Upaniṣads. Upaniṣads in themselves are totally bewildering.

1:04:00It's a very, how to say, spontaneous revelations. Very contradictory too. So many things, you know, this and that. You can only understand this with the help of Vedānta-sūtra.

1:04:17Śrīla Vyāsadeva wrote this logical, you know, treatises for us to understand Upaniṣad. So all the commentators they they wrote their commentaries on Upaniṣad knowing very well the meaning of Vedānta-sūtra.

1:04:33But even Vedānta-sūtra you will not be able to understand. The key for understanding Vedānta-sūtra, the real meaning of Vedānta-sūtra, is what? Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Bhagavad-gītā.

1:04:46All the commentators, even though they say it's Smriti, but in reality they take Bhagavad-gītā, which is the essence of all Upaniṣads, with the help of Bhagavad-gītā, which is very simple.

1:04:58They understand Vedānta-sūtra, with the help of understanding of Vedānta-sūtra, they understand Upaniṣads.

1:05:06Gaudiya Sampradaya is unique sampradaya because they say you cannot understand even Bhagavad-gītā. If you try to understand Bhagavad-gītā, you will be bewildered too.

1:05:23You can only understand Bhagavad-gītā with the help of what? Of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam.

1:05:32So the highest development of Vedic literature is Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, and Madhvācārya himself says that Śrīmad Bhāgavatam is the commentary on Vedānta-sūtra, Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is the essence of all the Purāṇas, Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is the explanation of Bhagavad-gītā.

1:05:55So our ācāryas they don't bother with Upaniṣads, Vedānta-sūtra and even Bhagavad-gītā.

1:06:03They take Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, which is the essence, and it's actually in the very beginning of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, it is said the sages of Naimiṣāraṇya asked: life is so short in Kali-yuga, people are so dull-headed. How will they be able to understand all the scriptures, this huge

1:06:26ocean of the scriptures? Please tell us the essence of all the oceans of the scriptures so that we can understand what the scriptures are all about. And that's how Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam appeared.

1:06:38And sometimes people criticize Śrīla Prabhupāda. He is very open in his interpretation of Bhagavad-gītā, Krishna says karma-yoga. Śrīla Prabhupāda translates devotional service. And people, you know, it's very, you know, it's written karma karma there and uh translation devotional service. You know how is that?

1:07:07Because Śrīla Prabhupāda explains Bhagavad-gītā, not from the point of view of Bhagavad-gītā.

1:07:14Śrīla Prabhupāda explains Bhagavad-gītā from the vantage point, from the point of view of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, which is the essence of all Vedic literature and the essence of Bhagavad-gītā.

1:07:27And that's an amazing way to do it, and that's the right way to do it. I mean, I need many more days to prove it. But do believe it that it is like this. It's an amazing thing.

1:07:46So this is how I I just very briefly wanted to tell you because I don't want to get into technical details what is the difference between different sampradayas.

1:07:56But uh ultimately uh the uniqueness of Gaudiya Sampradaya, Gaudiya Sampradaya accepts this prastana tri, but our understanding is that everything is there in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam.

1:08:09Because even in this verse and in this purport Śrīla Prabhupāda explains that in the previous chapter Krishna himself says, vedaiś ca sarvair? āham eva vedyaḥ. All the Vedas are meant to understand whom? Me. I am the essence of all the Vedas.

1:08:32And what is the scripture where Krishna is explained with all the clarity? It's only one scripture. What is the scripture? Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam.

1:08:44Even in Bhagavad-gītā, it's you know Krishna so so bewilderingly liberal. He says ja, this is good, and this is also good, yeah, yeah, whatever you like ultimately. You know, I explained to you everything.

1:08:59Now you do whatever you want. So this is Bhagavad-gītā. Krishna is very politically correct in Bhagavad-gītā.

1:09:11The only Shastra which tells you the truth and from the very beginning it is said in Śrīmad- Bhāgavatam itself that this is the dharmaḥ projjhita-kaitavo ’tra paro niḥśūryate sūradāṁ satyāṁ paraṁ dhīmahi? All the cheating religions, all the cheating dharmas are completely eradicated from the scriptures.

1:09:32And this is the creation of Vyāsadeva himself. And only when we take this point of view, the point of view of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, we can understand everything. We can understand all the Upaniṣads, all the Vedas, everything.

1:09:47Otherwise, if we don't take this, it will we will be bewildered. We will do wrong things. Ultimately, again, as I said, what is the need of sampradāya? What is the need of school?

1:10:02The need of sampradaya or the need of school is to give us the very clear understanding of what we should do, what we shouldn't do. So that we achieve the highest happiness, highest destination, highest success in life.

1:10:17How to do this? Here is the key. But how do we know that this is the key? And I will give you a little clue for this. How do we know that this is true?

1:10:30Is it not a fanatical statement of some fanatical Hare Krishna devotee who is just, you know, he's a convert, he is a born-again Hare Krishna. He's somebody who is just you know totally brainwashed.

Spiritual realization of the great acharyas

1:10:47So I I wanted to give you a little clue. Besides Shastra, there is another very important pramana which we have to take into consideration. Even though it may sound a little contradictory.

1:11:10You know, for I don't know how many, for one and a half hour I have been ranting and raving that shastra only shastra this is the highest pramana nothing else and here I am saying that there is something else I will try to explain to you.

1:11:33We have a very vivid example in front of our eyes. We have all these great sages. Shankaracharya is an amazing personality. Absolutely amazing personality.

1:11:47You know, he did his amazing job and mission is re-establishing the Vedic culture and you know the faith in the Vedas. Within 32 years. You know, he established very strategically. He was a brilliant organizer.

1:12:06He established very strategically, four points, you know, established his maths, wrote the commentaries, created disciples. I mean, amazing. Ramanuja Acharya was an amazing personality. Absolutely amazing personality.

1:12:24He was living 120 years. He was so deeply immersed in this bhakti. He, you know, he had 700, he had thousands of disciples, seven hundred sannyāsīs alone. You know, uh I think fourteen hundred ladies in a

1:12:43renowned order of life, you know, so much achievements, you know, amazing philosophy which he wrote. Madhvācārya if we take it's absolutely amazing, you know what personality he was.

1:12:59And a seven-year-old boy accepted sannyās, seven-year-old boy became guru of his guru. His guru accepted him as his guru because he he recognized that he knows Shastra and understanding Shastra better than himself.

1:13:19You know, and you know so many mystical experiences which he had, and you know Rāmānujācārya as well. Jachari as well. And you know he was a great musician. Madhvācārya was an amazing musician.

1:13:33On the top of his, you know, the top most philosopher, amazing organizer. Very strong man. He was a fighter. He was a wrestler. Once he was wrestling with, I think, six

1:13:51or seven different men, and he just, you know, I easily defeated all of them and then ate 200 bananas on the top of everything. You know, just amazing personality, really amazing personality.

1:14:07And then we have Nimbārka Ācārya, Vallabha Ācārya, who is right.

1:14:14They all say the same thing, they all recognize there is only one God, they all recognize Bhagavad-gītā, they all recognize Upaniṣads, they all recognize Vedānta-sūtra, they all say different things.

1:14:28Śaṅkarācārya says you repeat Tat tvam asi and you become Brahman. Rāmānujācārya says you do śaraṇāgati and you chant oṁ namo nārāyaṇāya. Madhvācārya says you just worship the Ditti and you chant so many sktas.

1:14:47And if you are sāttvika soul, then you will be liberated. If you are the tāmasika soul, you will go to hell. And uh Nimbārkācārya says, you know, he of course closest

1:15:00to us, but anyway and the Caitanya Mahāprabhu comes and he says, Chant Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare Hari Ram Hare Ram Ram Ram Hare and they all base their philosophy, their practice, their moods, their attitudes on the same shastras.

1:15:18Whom do we believe? That's a very important question, isn't it? Because you know it appears that it's not enough to have the pramana of the Shastra because they all follow Shastra. Whom do we believe? What is the best way?

1:15:37Whom should we follow? Let me uh tell you little clue and you can think about it for yourself later. Ultimately, all the acharias are correct. Even though they give different interpretations, they're all correct.

1:16:00How is that? Is it possible? Yes, they're all correct. You know, we all know this beautiful fable that or story that there were four blind men or five blind men who

1:16:16were trying to understand who is the elephant, what is the elephant. And one says elephant is like a pillar. Another say no, elephant is like a wall. Another say no, elephant is like a snake.

1:16:30Another say no, elephant is like a rope. Who is right? All right. Yeah, all right. So why are they all right? Because they all have experience, right?

1:16:48One is pushing to the you know side of the elephant, one is holding the leg of the elephant, another one is holding the tail of the elephant, another one is holding the trunk of the elephant. They're all right.

1:17:02Who is more right? The more right is the one who has more complete experience. All the Acharyas are right.

1:17:14If you go to Badrinath, on the way to Badrinath, you will stop in a place which is called Joshimath. Perhaps you've been there. And this is a very interesting place because this is the stronghold of Śaṅkarācārya.

1:17:31Śaṅkarācārya, of course he established this Badrinath temple and he established this Joshimath. Joshimath is the corruption of the Sanskrit Jyotir Mat. This is the place where supposedly Shankaracharya achieved enlightenment.

1:17:52He saw the light. Still, if you go there, there is a very beautiful tree, silkworm tree. Huge, I mean. Thousands of years of this tree. And under this tree, there is a light Akanda, how you call it uh

1:18:09uh depae deepa which is uh burning for thousands of years because they say according to their tradition Śaṅkarācārya was not seventh century AD he was before. Was he something 2000 years back?

1:18:26Anyway, he achieved this experience of Brahman. And he wrote his explanation of Vedas and Vedanta and Upaniṣads according to what? According to his experience. He just saw this impersonal Brahman and in this way he's right.

1:18:51Because that's his experience. You cannot say that it's wrong. It's right. But when somebody comes and says, you know, now there is this very important issue comes.

1:19:11If you are to find the most complete path you have to judge according to the experience of the acharya of the school. They all base their school on the philosophy of Veda, which is correct.

1:19:27They all live according to the rules of Veda, but still the experience which they get is different. Śaṅkarācārya only got impersonal understanding of God. What is more complete, personal or impersonal?

1:19:44Absolutely, because what is more complete? Formless or having form? Yeah. Because always it's a very important principle always something formless is based on something which has form. Like for examples rose petal.

1:20:08Does it have a form? It has form. Does it have some formless element in it? Roseness, right? The color is formless. But can the color, formless color, exist without the form? No. Its existence is always based on the form.

1:20:38So, and that's exactly what Krishna says in Bhagavad-gītā: Brahmanohi Pratishtaham. The Brahman is aim aham is pratista is the foundation of impersonal Brahman. The impersonal experience which you have is based on form.

1:21:01So if two philosophers who are based their philosophy on the Vedas and follow basic rules of the Vedas. One say God is formless, another say God has form. Whom do we prefer? Yeah.

1:21:20Those who have who say that God has form? Because it's the higher understanding.

1:21:28One Śaṅkarācārya has to say is that form is illusory. He has to say the ultimate is the formless and the form is illusory, ultimately, form doesn't exist.

1:21:40But it's not the complete understanding, it's not the correct understanding. If you understand that the form is real, there is no doubt about it. It's more complete.

Personal and impersonal realizations of God

1:21:53So, among the two schools of Vedanta, we should definitely prefer the personal schools because they have more complete experience. And then if we compare the experience of different acharyas, we will

1:22:10understand that their understanding of God is complete? More complete and the most complete. If you say that God is Vishnu. It's very complete understanding.

1:22:31It's much more complete than Śaṅkarācārya's understanding. When Śaṅkarācārya says God is impersonal, it's incomplete understanding.

1:22:40When somebody says God has form, and this is the form of Vishnu, Vishnu means all pervading. Even though he's all pervading, he still has the form. Uh it's more complete understanding but when somebody says

1:22:55that ultimately the God is Krishna, which is more complete? Krishna is more complete. Because Krishna is endowed with much more emotions, much more love, much more energies.

1:23:17If we compare the capacity or the manifestation of God in the form of Vishnu, we will see He manifests His immense powers, but it's limited.

1:23:29Even in the form of Lord Rāmacandra, he doesn't manifest all the forms, all the powers. The most complete understanding is Krishna because it is amazing. Nobody is so completely amazing as Krishna.

1:23:50So that's the understanding and when we look objectively on the founders of different sampradayas we

1:24:00ultimately will come to Caitanya Mahāprabhu and the whole Caitanya-caritāmṛta is about what? It's about the experience, the life experience of Caitanya Mahāprabhu explained through the Vedas.

1:24:10It's about the experience, the life experience of Caitanya Mahaprabhu explained through the Vedas.

1:24:22Caitanya-caritāmṛta is not just you know the mundane scholars will say that Caitanya-caritāmṛta is hagiography. They have this very deriding term hagiography.

1:24:35Hagiography means it's just some sentimental kind of, you know. Followers they wrote some exaggerate praise of their you can trust this. No, Caitanya-caritāmṛta is not that.

1:24:52Caitanya-caritāmṛta takes the life of Lord Chaitanya and explains how the life of Lord Chaitanya is the purport of all the Vedas.

1:25:03How he manifests the essence of all the Vedas, how the love of God, which is the essence of all the Vedas, is manifested in his life.

1:25:12And when we look objectively in his life and his manifestations, we will understand this is the most complete spiritual experience.

1:25:26You know, with all due respect, we really respect all the Vaishnava Charyas deeply in the heart. Their achievements are amazing.

1:25:35And even Śaṅkarācārya, he is amazing, and what he did is amazing. Caitanya Mahaprabhu said there is no fault in Acharya. He has his mission, he fulfilled his mission.

1:25:48But what we see, we see the gradual progression and the complete culmination of all the vedic experience and vedic understanding is there in the life of Lord Chaitanya and his understanding of

1:26:03the vedas through his experience is being described by Jiva Goswami in Saṁdarbhas. And that's why this is the most complete and most amazing philosophy which is there.

1:26:21And again, please don't take it blindly. Please take the statements and examine it for yourself. Try to be completely neutral and see how it is right.

1:26:37And that's why this verse which was spoken by Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira was so important because in the last two lines

1:26:49of this verse he says dharmasya tattvaṁ nihitaṁ guhāyāṁ the truth of Dharma is very deeply hidden. It's in a very secret place. mahājano yena gataḥ sa panthāḥ.

1:27:08You should find Mahajan and you should find the truly great person who follows Vedas.

1:27:18Because you know, in one purport in Caitanya-caritāmṛta Śrīla Prabhupāda says there are so many mahājanas for for any philosophy or any uh you know division of life there is some mahājana, he says for scientists Darwin is Mahajan.

1:27:37Does it mean mahājano yena gataḥ sa panthāḥ? You know, and so many people follow Darwin because he's mahājana for them.

1:27:45But we have to find mahājana who follows strictly Vedas, who really completely, totally strictly following the Vedas, but at the same time whose life experience, whose spiritual experience is most complete. And following him will be the real path or the real understanding of the Vedas.

1:28:10And that's why Śrīla Prabhupāda in this purport says that ultimately the only thing which you have to understand is that you have to chant Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare Hare Rāma, Hari Rāma, Rāma, Rāma, Hare Hare.

1:28:22Why?

Chanting as the essence of Veda

1:28:23Because this is what who was doing? Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu was doing.

1:28:30After understanding all the Vedas through the lens of his experience, after understanding the complete that up to the highest possible limit, the essence of the Vedas.

1:28:47He came to this conclusion: what is the essence of the Vedas? Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare Hare Ram, Hari Ram Ram Ram Hare Hare.

1:28:59But to understand this you had to listen this long protracted lecture. And there is one little thing which I say uh at the very end. I mean I didn't want to get into technical details.

1:29:18Prayāga Rāja Prabhu wanted me to explain the difference of different philosophies of different Vaishnava acharyas. I could have done it, but it's it's little technical and it's not that necessary.

1:29:33If you want I can do it, but I I don't think it's there is time for this. But I want to say one thing, which is very important. All the Vaishnavacharyas they were taking this Vedic literature and especially Upaniṣads.

1:29:54Vedic vākyas of Upaniṣads which are sometimes very contradictory. And what they were trying to do, they were trying to create a philosophical system which is first non-contradictory. Reconcile all the contradictions.

1:30:14And everyone was doing it with different levels of success in different ways. They developed different techniques. How to reconcile completely different and bewildering statements of Upaniṣads.

1:30:29And everyone would bring this synthesis. To understand what is the essence, what they want really used to do. What is the essence of the teachings of the Vedas of the Shastras?

1:30:43So one thing they wanted to make to create a system which is free from contradictions.

1:30:49But then somebody else would come and would find some contradictions in their system. And defeat this and say, no, this is not the correct understanding, this is the better understanding.

1:31:00And somebody else would come and say this is the better understanding. Another thing which they wanted to do, they wanted to create a complete system.

1:31:13This is the intention of all the Acharyas, they want to create a system which would explain all the different statements, and all the different statements would be understandable within the system.

1:31:27Because if you look at these different statements, different stories for Puranas, oh my goodness, you know, such a mess.

1:31:36You know, so all the Acharyas, they wanted to, they were striving for these two things: logically non-contradictory system, one, and complete system. The only, and nobody could achieve this.

1:31:54Because as I said, they were trying to make the non-contradictory system somebody would find some contradictions, and ultimately it was not complete.

1:32:04Because when you try when you try to do it completely logical, you will have to kind of neglect certain statements of the shastras which don't fit into your system.

1:32:18Like for example, I can give you a very interesting example. I'm now uh trying to I I'm uh somewhat engaged in a debate with some followers of Madhvācārya, some Russian followers of Madhva philosophy. Madhva philosophy.

1:32:36And uh they wrote uh uh tremendous amount of articles, I don't know how many articles, uh I think uh up to 40 articles uh criticizing Gaudiya Sampradaya.

1:32:51And they criticize left and right, this and that, so many things they find, so many faults they find. And one of their criticisms is that Rādhārāṇī is not there in the Vedas. And she's not. It's a fact.

1:33:10Well, there is the Ṛk-pariśiṣṭa which is an appendix to the Ṛg-veda. And there is one verse which... ...you know, nobody knows where it is. it is. It's not such a famous.

1:33:29So and there are some indications maybe some you know, some but really she's not there. She's not in Upaniṣads. She's not. And they say it's just later creation.

1:33:44When we say she's in Puranas, they say, oh, this is interpolation. So, what I want to say, I I don't want to get into this subject matter. I definitely want to prove, I can prove that Rādhārāṇī is there in the Vedas.

1:34:00There's no doubt about it. But what I want to say is that they have their philosophy, but Rādhārāṇī doesn't fit in their philosophy. And therefore they have to reject her.

1:34:15Even though there are very clear statements in the Puranas, in Padma Purana there is a statement they say in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam there is no Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī. She is there. Of course she is there.

1:34:26Even though her name is not mentioned there, but that's another subject matter. We don't get into this.

1:34:33But what I want to say is that while trying to find or to create non-contradictory logical philosophical system, they don't achieve the completeness. Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī doesn't fit into that system, so she's interpolation.

1:34:54She is just concoction. Krishna, Krishna is also concoction. Well, Krishna is the avatar is a concoction according to them. Vishnu is the original thing. You know, Goloka is not there anyway, so many things they criticize.

1:35:10But what I want to say is that everyone was trying to achieve non-contradictory system and completeness. Nobody can do it. Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī, while creating philosophical system, please listen very carefully.

1:35:28From the very beginning, he said, I am not going to create system which is non-contradictory. Because he calls our philosophy how? Achintya. Achintya means contradictory.

1:35:48By rejecting this notion or this idea because God is contradictory. World is contradictory, reality is contradictory, Vedas are contradictory. There's nothing wrong with it.

1:36:04By rejecting this notion, by rejecting this attempt, by calling this philosophy a cintya-bhedābheda-tattva, he creates philosophy which is complete. Which is most complete.

1:36:20According to the experience, explaining the experience of Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, he has created the philosophy which is the most complete, which which can you know explain practically everything.

1:36:33There is no need to reject this statement of the Vedas or that statement of the Vedus, it's all fit within the system. Because it's acintya-bhedābheda-tattva.

1:36:43And if worse comes to worse, you can always say this is just acintya. You can just say you don't — what can we do? — and sometimes we have to employ this explanation. But still it's complete.

Questions on practical application and guidance

1:37:05So this is a little review which I wanted to give and please forgive me for this boring class. Thank you very much.

1:37:27We can take some questions. Yes, please. Maharaj sort of concluded with the uh principle that uh it's all about chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa and be happy from from what you said here.

1:37:46It it seems that when uh a spiritual practitioner begins his journey and he starts chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa, he doesn't seem to find that he's getting happy. Often he finds there are more difficulties that come in.

1:37:59Uh within his life. So just to comment on that.

1:38:02And secondly, is there uh um you were speaking this morning about offenses, so is there is there some uh revelation just on a summary of what is we may chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, but the offenses perhaps Okay.

1:38:22Um first of all everyone in the beginning in the very beginning achieved some amazing experience while chanting.

1:38:35Krishna gives very freely this experience, especially because initially we are not offensive, we are very humble. We come to the society and we see that everyone is a saint here. And I'm, you know, I'm nobody here.

1:38:54But then, you know, over the years we realize that nobody is a saint and I'm almost there and that creates some offensive attitude and it definitely sours our experience. This is how it works.

1:39:20Usually we come very humble lower than the blade of grass, vi become much more, you know, we become higher than the tree. Instead of becoming more tolerant than the tree, you will become higher than the tree.

1:39:49So so initially everyone feels relief. Everyone definitely feels I I can say it f from my own experience.

1:40:00You know, in my life it was very interesting because I started chanting and I felt something and I I really felt good about the whole thing.

1:40:11And uh because before that I was very happ unhappy and morose, even though everything was nice. But then from the external point of view, so many unpleasant things started happening. KGB came to me.

1:40:24And I had my grandfather who was very dear to me and he loved me dearly. He was a professor. And he wanted by all means that I should defend my PhD thesis. He because that was his idea. He was so dear to him.

1:40:42And KGB didn't want me to, you know, become a PhD. So there was little contradiction uh between the desire of my grandfather and desire of KGB.

1:40:57And uh and uh but for me uh uh at one point it became really irrelevant whether I didn't you know before it was important but then it became really not important.

1:41:08And I remember very clearly my grandfather was nagging and nagging. And he was saying, you know, why why don't you do this? You have to do this, you have to do this.

1:41:19And uh you know uh he had a mm wife uh and this wife she's uh she was listening to this and then ultimately she couldn't tolerate this. She said, just look at him. He doesn't need this PhD, he's too happy for this.

1:41:44You know, just just look at him. Why does he need it? And that was a fact.

1:41:52So uh uh initially we all feel new experience and we're all very happy, but then because we commit offenses uh you know it uh it definitely destroys the initial experience which we have and uh sometimes spiritual life becomes very tedious exercise.

1:42:18And we don't feel anything and we feel like just, you know, it's just, you know, we have to do it. you know we have to do it.

1:42:26But if we develop the correct attitude, I I I kind of indicated this, but uh perhaps I will uh elaborate a little bit on this. That sampradaya when, we speak about sampradaya, sampradaya do not only

1:42:44transmit the philosophy, the teachings. Sampradaya transmits philosophy, the teachings, what else? Culture. Culture. ja.

1:42:56Practice and culture means attitudes and moods, so to speak, so the all the problems which we have is that we accept the philosophy, we accept the practice, but we don't follow the right attitudes.

1:43:20The right attitude is there.

1:43:22Tṛṇād api su-nīcena taror api sahiṣṇunā amāninā mānadena kīrtanīyaḥ sadā hariḥ. If we understand this right mood or right under attitude and if we perform our spiritual practice in this mood, the experience will be as promised.

1:43:39Chant and be happy. If we don't understand this, we create offenses and our practice is faulty. We have to understand that the three things should be there.

1:43:53One thing is teaching we have to accept we have to understand the teachings very nicely.

1:43:59Second thing is practice what we have to do, how we have to do, but then the third thing is very important in which mood we do what we do. This mood of service, this mood of inoffensive innocent kind of attitude, the service attitude when we try to serve others. Immediately when one adopts this attitude, he gets happiness.

1:44:26He gets the real you know experience, even sometimes faint happiness, but still happiness. It's very simple. You know, you just serve some prasadam and you feel happy. You do something and you feel happy.

1:44:41So that's my answer to this question. Yes, Sundharananda. Um I was going through a journey of a question in my mind as you were talking and I think I got the answer, but I just want to share that journey with you.

1:44:57You start by saying that the Shastras are very important and then you develop that concept of uh karma and dharma and then you develop the concept of understanding the soul the so then then understand the god and understanding the relation of soul and god um, then getting to then getting to the state of love and then ultimately understanding the mood of uh chanting Hare Krishna mantra.

1:45:18So I was thinking that there is another route where we can bypass all this and go directly up the elevator, which is the bhakti-yoga, and not having to go through the jñāna-yoga.

1:45:28So I was thinking of why not be just those those sages who were under just performing bhakti. But and and also following the mahājanas.

1:45:37But then I realized when you talked about mahājanas and when I realized about when you when I was thinking about rāgānuga-bhakti and I was thinking that when you get to that say we still have to go through the vaidī-bhakti and to understand vaidī-bhakti we have to understand the the rules and regulations and hence you find what very correct so just but I don't yeah see to to engage in rāgānuga-bhakti you don't need all these things.

1:46:00Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī very beautifully explains thank you for this question. It's very important question. In Bhakti-sandarbha he says that there are two paths. One path he calls uh vicāra-pradhāna,

1:46:16another path he calls ruci-pradhāna. Ruci-pradhāna is very simple.

1:46:23And ruci-pradhāna is explained in this verse of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam: satāṁ Prasangam Mamavirya Samvidu Pavanti Krit Karnara Sayana Katha Tjosanam Aswapavargam Bartmani Swadarati Bhakti Ranukramishati.

1:46:44So ruci-pradhāna means you listen some somebody who has total taste and you know ruci and this rāga attachment and And you just imbibe this mood and you don't need anything you are totally completely immersed because you already get this experience from him and this is very rare.

1:47:10This is not a very common thing, even though it's a correct way of understanding. Usually we have mixture and then he explains very elaborately vicāra pradhāna.

1:47:24Vicāra-pradhāna means that you study you listen śāstra, you understand it logically, you understand you know who is the object of worship, you listen different at different gurus and then you choose particular guru and you learn under him the mode of worship and this and that. It's a very complicated system of creating complete firm faith.

1:47:48In reality, we usually have the mixture of the two. We have some ruchi, some taste. Do we? Yeah, we do. We all have. We all by the mercy of Śrīla Prabhupāda.

1:48:03But at the same time because ruchi is so faint, It may not be that strong. We need the supportive system.

1:48:13And the supportive system is coming from the śāstras, from the logic of the śāstras. And that's why Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura said that ultimately our you know we're following this vaidhi-bhakti as a support. Vaidhi-bhakti is only a support of ruchi. Ultimately we will have to get the ruchi.

1:48:36But it's a support system, uh, to to get it work. Yes. I had a question about a statement you made. Um, you said that, uh, to believe in God, to āstika, uh, without believing in śāstra, you are an āstika. Yeah.

1:49:05My question is, uh, what does believing believing in God look like without śāstra? Well I believe in God, that's it. And I don't do anything. You know, I once I met one fellow, he was from some Protestant tradition.

1:49:29And um we came to him it was around twelve o'clock uh noon time and he just got up and he was really uh and we started speaking and then he said ultimately I'm already saved. And so why do I have to do anything?

1:49:56So I looked at him. Because he says my name is already in the book of life. Whatever it means. And your name is in the book of death, fine. But it it doesn't really look like. So he believes in God.

1:50:18He firmly believes that he is saved.

1:50:20But, uh, because he doesn't believe in the regulations of the śāstra, he leads unregulated life, and this unregulated life, whether he believes it or not, affects his consciousness, and then the end of his life, his affected, contaminated, uh, tamasika consciousness, and you, you know, you cannot have other kind of consciousness if you sleep till noon.

1:50:45You know it's just it's a very natural conclusion. Unless some miracle happens, which may happen, but you know it's not science.

1:50:55Scientifically, it's like this: if you don't follow Shastra, if you don't regulate your life with the help of Shastra, then your mind will not be elevated, your consciousness will not be elevated, your experience of God will not be real.

1:51:16You may have some experience but it will be just imaginary experience. Because ultimately how you can have experience of God if you are Tamasic. Or even if you are satvik.

1:51:29You have to be 10% beyond the modes of material nature. And this is how you know Shastra elevated this.

1:51:37That's why uh you know if you accept god but reject shastra you're nasty and if you accept shastra but even reject god still you're astik it's better Yes.

1:51:56Maharaj you said uh in in this we have to follow regulating principles and uh vaidhi sadnavakti other But at the same time in Kaliyuk our intelligence is degraded and we are going down and we are all affected by that.

1:52:15So how to regulate that in the first place and what should be the hope of uh what what should we be looking at? How to regulate it? It's very simple. That's why Chaitanya Mahaprabhu said Sankirtan.

1:52:28Sankirtan means many people together practice spiritual life. Because when we practice it in the society, there is a very important element of social pressure. Which helps a lot.

1:52:46You know, you want to f be fit in the society, you want to be recognized in the society, and then you try to follow it whereas if you are left alone on your own who cares

1:53:04therefore society is so important therefore we come together therefore, we inspire each other by saying this is nice. We're sharing each other's experience with each other. And it's it's the way, you know.

1:53:20And we see other people who follow this and we we think it may be possible. You know, like people I know many people. The initially when I first met the devotees on the street.

1:53:35Like recently, I spoke with one brahmacārī, Nowsan. He told me his story. He said, I met the devotee on the street, and I was so impressed by him.

1:53:47And then uh but I I I came back I was really you know shaken uh by this encounter with this devotee but

1:53:58then he said, "But then I came back home and I thought, 'No'." And this devotee on the street, he was distributing books, and he told him, "Yeah, we live in āśrama, and we are monks, and we are distributing these books, and we follow four regulative principles. We don't eat meat, we don't have illicit sex, we don't have any intoxications and no gambling.

1:54:22And he heard this and he said, impossible. No, he was battling within himself. Not possible. No, it's not possible.

1:54:32But then he came to the āśrama and now he lives in the āśrama and he says it's actually very easy. How is that easy? Because he lives in a society where everyone follows.

1:54:45It's difficult when you live on your own, but it's very easy when everyone follows and you know, yeah, what's wrong? I am I'm not you know that's how it works. Yes.

1:55:02In Bhagavad-gītā chapter 2, verse 52, Kṛṣṇa says to Arjuna that when his intelligence has passed through then scores to the vision, then he will become indifferent to what is uh what

1:55:19is to put, yeah, to differ, so can you elaborate on that, and would would that be appropriate versus to connect your presentation to that? Yeah, absolutely, because

1:55:32what we hear when Krishna speaks about this he will become indifferent what we heard. We get all our desires from hearing. You know how do they sell the products through the advertisement? What is the advertisement?

1:55:51Advertisement is a sound vibration, you know which instils some desire within our heart. You need this. This is good. This will make you happy. When Krishna speaks about what you heard and you become indifferent.

1:56:10He basically speak. You become indifferent to all the desires which came through the hearing. Because what you hear in now day you hear radio, you hear internet, you hear this and that, but in the time of Krishna you

1:56:29only heard Vedas. And what Vedas are speaking about? Oh, you get this and you get that and, you go to heaven and you you will enjoy with samaras in the heaven.

1:56:41And Krishna says, when you come out of this illusion and this creat illusion because illusion is all these desires which are there in the heart. But you become indifferent to all these desires of what you heard.

1:56:56And you become you know you become elevated. You understand what is the meaning of this, what is the purpose of this. Just to entice you to follow the Vedic path. Because you have these desires.

1:57:13You anyway have them, you know. So Vaters say, you know, come to us, live regulated life, your desires will be fulfilled in such a way.

1:57:22But then in the meantime, you will develop faith in the Shastras and you will develop faith in the in those who follow shastra, which is the most important.

1:57:32And by developing this you will be elevated and ultimately you will understand that this is all futile and useless. Last question. Okay, last question.

1:57:47Maharaj, uh, you spoke about, uh, you know, economical units and jumping the hamsah. And yes, we chant and we do find some happiness in that as well. But then you brought up the point about duties.

1:58:02And we all have different duties to different people in our lives. And for those duties we have to refer to the scriptures. Because there are 400 different types of 400,000 different types of consciousness.

1:58:21So we need help as to what's my nature, how that can be applied in terms of my duty to the various stakeholders in my life. And where do I go for that?

1:58:35Śrīla Prabhupāda says that you need a guru who will explain to you how to practically apply the regulations of the Vedas in your particular life in your particular situation.

1:58:50To somebody guru will say you remain brahmacārī, to somebody guru will say you go and do your gṛhastha life and do it very diligently and go through this experience and you know raise your children.

1:59:04To some people guru say you know anyway I will not give this radical example. It's too radical, no.

1:59:14But, but, there are different, uh, different instructions which guru will say because he knows the purpose of the shastra, he knows how to apply shastras in the life. This is his job.

1:59:26He is supposed to tell you what you're supposed to do, what you're not supposed to do, what is your duty, what is not your duty.

1:59:33And because you yourself will cheat yourself because uh there is this cheating propensity in us, and this cheating propensity will twist the understanding of Shastra. Therefore, we need Guru who will tell us the truth.

1:59:50This is how it is. Now you're cheating yourself this way or another self way. Of course it's difficult because nobody listens to Guru but that's another question that guru can give a direction.

2:00:11But to live on a day-to-day level, you need to compare your values, behavior to the something.

2:00:21Yeah yeah but you know guru is there, guru gives you general instructions, you know, but you should, y you need also some Shiksha Guru nearby, some mentors, counsellors, whatever you call, who will be available for day-to-day uh conversations and understanding and elucidations of the meaning of the Vedas.

2:00:46You need devotees whom you trust, and therefore Rupa Goswami says that you have to open your heart and this is the this is the way of uh, guhyam ākhyāti pṛcchati, this is the way of, that's why we live in the society.

2:01:03So you you need the association of people and you need to do Shastra study also. It will also help. But we have to learn from Guru that's very